Making
The
Top Ten
How do I decide which abortion clinics and abortion doctors make it to my top 10? The same way you should decide which clinic works for you. The one thing about medicine in general and abortion in particular is that you can't easily get a lot of useful information about the doctors and the clinics. So, go with what you can get.
Do you know someone or more than one woman who has had a recent abortion. Asking them is a good place to start, but you can't just ask if they were happy with the outcome. You need their opinions on lots of things like, was it painful, how long did it take, did they give you the whole cost up front, did you have to stand in line and anything they know about the specific doctor who performed their procedure. It's all important and it's a start. I have lots of access to information from women who have had abortions and their information is really helpful.
Call the abortion clinic or doctor's office. I start by asking how much it costs for an abortion at 8 weeks. They quote a price and I ask if there are any other costs. Their answer here is really a clue as to how they do business. If there is a schedule of possible other fees, there may be trouble. It's not just that they are quoting a lowball price and then boosting the price once they have you in the office. It could be an indicator that they aren't using the best, or even acceptable, procedures. For example, if they say the abortion is $xxx and they don't tell you that you need an ultrasound that is another $100, you should suspect that they are willing to do the abortion without doing an ultrasound. That's a bad thing. If they insist that an ultrasound is essential, that's good, but they should quot its cost when they give you the initial cost. Why would you ask about cost if you didn't want to know the whole cost?
Evaluating the abortion doctors and the abortion clinics themselves is a little more difficult. Generally speaking I wouldn't consider going to a clinic that hires part-time doctors. You want an abortion specialist and you won't find one working part-time for a chain clinic. Large chain clinics, sometimes not even owned or managed by doctors and Planned Parenthood are the most common users of part-time doctors that make a small income performing abortions with minimal training.
Clinics and doctors' offices are physical structures; buildings with entrances and exits (duh) and are located next to sidewalks and parking lots. All of this means something to you when you are talking about an abortion clinic. Do you really want to walk through a gauntlet of jeering anti-American anti-freedom anti-choice protesters to go to and from? A clinic should have an entrance designed to protect the privacy of patients. Number one on my Top Ten List is a clinic designed from the ground up with that and other patient safety and comfort issues in mind.
There are some other important sites you should visit such as the Abortion Clinic Guide where you can find a current list of abortion doctors and abortion clinics. You can also visit Abortion Doctors Lookup even though it has a similar list with less information.
doctors & clinics list